


Meeting Anna

by Goddess47



Series: Hale Land [13]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: M/M, Sheriff Stilinski's Name is John, reference to off-screen violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-23
Updated: 2020-10-23
Packaged: 2021-03-09 06:15:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,179
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27169184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Goddess47/pseuds/Goddess47
Summary: "I'm calling on behalf of the Hale pack," Stiles said. No names just as yet. "Are you safe where you are while we check you out?""I... I think so?" Anna replied."Before we bring you in, we need to check out some details," Stiles went on. "Tell me where you're from and what happened."
Relationships: Peter Hale/Stiles Stilinski
Series: Hale Land [13]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1846447
Comments: 18
Kudos: 304
Collections: Full Moon Ficlet Prompt #403: Official





	Meeting Anna

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Vafrous_Vee](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vafrous_Vee/gifts).



> Okay, this is Vafrous_Vee's fault. She asked an intelligent question about why didn't Anna become the Alpha. So I went... Hmmm... and then this happened. Sigh. I have other things to write...

"What do we know of the Marley pack?" Stiles asked Peter.

Peter tilted his head in thought and then shrugged. "Nothing?"

"There's a message on the emergency drop box from someone who claims to be the survivor of a Pack massacre," Stiles explained. "Anna Cooper."

Peter frowned. "I'll have to check. Where did she say she was?"

"She didn't," Stiles said. "But she left a phone number so we can call her back."

More thought. "Call her back, see where she is and if she's safe for another day, and we'll go from there. I need time to contact people."

"Got it," Stiles said. He went to another room. If Anna was a 'wolf he didn't want her to hear anything that gave her information about them. 

Stiles called the number and got a cautious, "Hello?"

"I'm calling on behalf of the Hale pack," Stiles said. No names just as yet. "Are you safe where you are while we check you out?" 

"I... I think so?" Anna replied. 

"Before we bring you in, we need to check out some details," Stiles went on. "Tell me where you're from and what happened."

There was a catch in her voice, and Stiles heard the deep breath. "My name is Anna Cooper. I was part of the Marley pack in Leestown, Virginia. I was away from the pack attending college at Duke University when I felt all my pack bonds ripped away from me six days ago. I fled the college and took the train to California. I rented a car in San Francisco and drove north for two days, avoiding the expressways when I could."

If all that was true, that meant Anna was likely only a couple hours, or less, from Beacon Hills. He knew enough about the Hale status in the supernatural community to know most packs would know at least the general location of the Hale pack. Being Hales was sometimes good-news/bad-news. The bad news was they couldn't hide like the Marley pack had tried to do.

"Did you have alternate IDs to use?" Stiles asked.

"Yes," Anna replied. "It's not an in-depth identity, but it got me this far."

"Tell me more about your pack," Stiles said. 

"Robert Marley was the Alpha," Anna said. When Stiles laughed a bit, she added, "Yeah, he hated that but his mother adored Bob Marley. So he went by Bert to at least get away from the teasing. He was married to Marianne but they had no kids. It was a small pack, there were twenty-three of us, with seven humans and the rest 'wolves. As far as I knew, there were no problems, but I'm not... I wasn't in the inner circle, so I didn't know everything."

"Did you try calling them? Did they have an emergency number?" Stiles asked.

"I tried calling my folks, once," Anna said. "I got voice mail for both of them. I left our emergency message that I was alive. I was using a burner phone that I ditched right away. I used that same phone to call the Pack drop box to leave a message that I was running and would call back when I had a secure line."

"You've lost all your bonds?" Stiles asked gently.

A small sob. "Yes. It hurts so much."

Stiles debated. "Can you hold on for another day while we check this out? Do you need anything?"

"I'm as okay as I'm going to be, I guess," Anna admitted. "I've already checked out of the motel I stayed in last night. I paid cash for that and it was just a mom-and-pop place, so there's little or no security. No cameras that I could see, anyway. I was going to go to a little bigger place tonight, just to have more people around me."

"Sounds as reasonable as anything," Stiles said. "Someone will monitor the Hale drop box closely until I can call you back, so call that number if you need something before I call you back."

A sigh of relief. "Thank you."

"Hang in there," Stiles said. "One more day."

Stiles went back to Peter and recounted his conversation with Anna.

"Is she an Alpha?" Peter asked.

"Didn't sound like it," Stiles replied. "College student, so probably in her early twenties at best. I think she's be more out of control if she were."

"There is a Marley pack in Virginia," Peter added. "Someone's checking on them and should be getting back to me soon."

"She sounded pretty shaky," Stiles said. "Doesn't mean it can't be a good act, but you'll have to listen in when I call her back."

Peter's contact confirmed that the Marley pack had been wiped out but no details on how. The Pack lived on land outside of the small town, picked up their mail from the post office on an irregular basis, and kept to themselves. As a result, no one had missed them until Anna called.

"It would probably be another week before someone would have reason to go to the property," Peter said. "Someone knew what they were doing."

"Is the local sheriff or whatever in the know?" Stiles asked. 

"No. So I had my contact call in the State police, there are 'wolves in that department," Peter said. "The Marley pack was largely African-American, so they can officially call it a suspected hate crime to justify calling them in. I should hear more in a few hours."

"They're going to want to talk to Anna at some point," Stiles suggested.

"We can deal with that when we have to," Peter shrugged.

"You're going to bring her in?"

"Ask John if he's willing to take her in for a couple of weeks," Peter said. "That will give her proximity to Pack without bringing her here. Neither of us are ready for that. You can deal with her there and we can make more decisions once we know more."

"Dad should be okay with that, but I'll double check," Stiles agreed. "I'll call Anna back after you hear anything else."

John agreed to let Anna stay with him. The Pack regularly used the Stilinski home as a point of contact for the Pack, since it kept outsiders away from the Den and, most importantly, the children. They had turned John's empty bedrooms into guest rooms and, in an emergency, could handle more guests in the basement. Stiles had wards around John's bedroom and his home office so that John had a bolt-hole if anything went wrong.

"Okay, something other than Hunters killed the Marleys," Peter said. "While it looks like Hunters took out part of the Pack, something supernatural took out at least the Alpha and a handful of the 'wolves."

"Someone looking to be an Alpha or collect an Alpha spark," Stiles said grimly. "That's not good." 

Peter and Stiles both remembered their encounter with the Alpha Pack. Those were among their collection of bad memories.

"Let's bring Anna in," Peter decided. "If she's close enough, get her tonight. If something supernatural is killing 'wolves, we should get her to safety."

"Okay," Stiles nodded as he called. He a had good feeling about Anna, but he wanted Peter to listen this time.

"Anna?" Stiles said when she answered the call. "We don't think you're in immediate danger, but we'd like to come for you tonight."

"Oh, thank god!" she exclaimed. "Yes. Please. What do I have to do?"

"Where can we meet? Someplace kinda public, so you're comfortable with meeting us," Stiles said. "A Starbucks, maybe?"

"There's one near the hotel I was going to stay at," she replied. "The Starbucks is on Oak Street, at the corner of... oh, corner of Devlin Street."

"Oak and Devlin," Stiles repeated. "I'll be wearing a plaid shirt and a Mets baseball cap. I'll order tea and use the name Fox. I'll get a table and you can approach me. I will have another 'wolf with me but they'll wait in the car. Okay?"

"Mets cap. Fox," Anna said. "Got it. And thank you!"

"Okay, it'll take me about an hour-and-a-half to get there, so you stay safe. Don't check out of your room, but can you bring your things with you? I'm assuming you don't have a lot," Stiles went on.

"Just what I could put in a backpack," Anna replied. "I'll bring that."

"Okay, see you soon!" Stiles said. He hung up and turned to Peter. "What do you think?"

"I could hear the pain in her voice and her heart was steady through the conversation," Peter said. "And I'll go with you."

"I was going to take Julie, thought a female wolf might be more comfortable," Stiles countered. 

"That's entirely too sensible," Peter sighed. "All right. But call me as soon as you pick Anna up."

"Deal," Stiles grinned.

Julie was happy to come with Stiles and along the way he told her what they knew. 

"Poor kid," Julie said. "There was a moment of... not pain, but grief, maybe, when we transferred our bond from Satomi to Peter. And there's always a lingering echo when someone in the pack passes away. But... oh, that's just horrid."

"I need you to be on your guard," Stiles warned. "We don't know Anna, really, and even if she didn't see anyone following her, that doesn't mean she's safe. So you're also here as muscle."

"Ooohhh, I'll protect you from the big bad wolf!" Julie cooed. 

"Hah!" Stiles laughed. "Actually, I'm more worried if someone, or something, has followed Anna this far."

"Wonder why she had the Hale pack as an emergency contact," Julie asked. "Especially if her Pack was on the East coast."

"Just part of what we want to know," Stiles said. "There are too many questions to let down our guard too soon."

"Do you want me to stay with her at your dad's?" Julie asked. 

"Hmm... that maybe a good idea," Stiles replied. "At least for one night. Call my dad and let him know to expect you."

"I'll have Rob bring me some things, too," Julie said. She called John first, to let him know he would have two guests, and then Rob, to bring her some sleep clothes and toiletries. 

Stiles knew there were always sweats and extra clothing at his dad's, for guests who showed up empty-handed, so he wasn't worried about that. But it let Julie let Rob know she would not be home tonight.

They spotted the Starbucks, and Stiles found a parking space just down the street. Most of the stores in the area were already closed for the night, so parking wasn't an issue.

After putting on his Mets cap, Stiles made his way into the Starbucks and ordered tea. He gave the name Fox and moved to a table in the window. He could see the car and he knew Julie could see him.

"Fox! I didn't know you'd be here!" A tall, willowy, black woman came over to the table. She looked slightly taller than Stiles and had short, tightly curly hair. Her voice was bright and cheerful, but Stiles could see the tension and exhaustion underneath.

"Anna! And I didn't know you'd be here, either!" Stiles got up and held out a hand. He let Anna decide if she wanted to shake hands or go for something that would look more personal.

She took his hand and held it tightly for a moment. Stiles did a quick scan. Not an Alpha. That answered one question and left a million more unanswered.

"Come on, join me!" Stiles invited, waving at the table. 

Anna dropped her backpack where it would be easy to pick up and her eyes shifted around the store.

She dropped her voice. "I feel like I'm being watched," she said hesitantly. "I don't know if I'm spooked or if something is really out there."

Stiles nodded. "Okay, play along," he said softly. He dialed his phone. "Hey, sweetie! Guess who I just met up with! No, you'll never guess. Anna is in town!"

Peter said. "You okay?"

"I know, I know," Stiles went on, nodding his head at nothing. "Okay, yes, I'll bring her along!" 

"Stay safe," Peter said. "Call me when you're on the road."

"Exactly! Yes, I can do that!" Stiles said cheerfully. "See you soon!"

"You are invited to a late dinner!" Stiles said cheerfully. "You know my sweetie, they won't take no for an answer and dinner'll be on the table by the time we get there!"

"Are you sure?" Anna said. Stiles could see the worry.

"Not a problem," Stiles nodded. "Always there's always more than enough food and we'd love a chance to visit."

A small breath. She stood and picked up her pack. "You've twisted my arm."

Stiles took his tea and they walked out, Stiles watching to see if anyone moved with them. He guided Anna to the car. "You remember Julie, don't you?" Stiles said, in case someone was watching. Both women nodded as Julie let Anna get into the front seat with her backpack between her feet. It probably held everything she owned, so Stiles didn't try to separate her from it. He also wanted to get moving as quickly as possible.

Stiles got into the car and put his tea in the cup holder as he activated the wards that would prevent anyone from easily following them. Because it was a moving vehicle, he couldn't -- quite -- make it invisible, but he could confound any watchers to make it almost impossible to track the car. He drove for about twenty minutes in the wrong direction for Beacon Hills and then pulled into a random gas station. Anna and Julie were quiet as Stiles concentrated on holding the wards.

"You okay?" Peter answered on the first ring.

"Anna was concerned that she was being watched," Stiles replied. "So we got out of there and headed away from Beacon Hills. We'll take the long route, so we'll be later than expected."

"Call me in an hour, then," Peter directed. 

"Worrywart," Stiles teased.

"With good reason," Peter said.

"Yeah, I know," Stiles sighed. "One hour." He hung up and turned to Julie. "Set a timer for me?" She nodded.

He turned to Anna. "You okay? Need anything?"

She shook her head. "Not right now. Thank you for coming for me," she said. "It was just... it just felt like someone was watching."

"We don't know everything, but something or someone supernatural was involved in killing your pack," Stiles needed to be blunt, as painful as that might be. "The folk who have been there think it was a combination of Hunters and someone supernatural involved, since you aren't an Alpha."

Startled, Anna said, "I didn't even think of that!" She frowned. "You can tell?"

Stiles nodded. He waved a hand in the air. "Sorry, yes, needed to do that to protect my Pack. Magic user and Emissary."

"You're the Mage!" Anna exclaimed. "I've heard of you!"

Julie snickered from the back seat.

"Okay, you do one improbable thing and you never hear the end of it," Stiles groused. "Not my story to tell, but whatever you heard was wildly exaggerated."

"You saved a Nemeton!" Anna said.

"Okay, maybe I did," Stiles sighed. "Anyway. I'm Stiles and that's Julie in the back. She's also part of the Hale pack and, well, no one was going to let me come alone to get you."

"More than reasonable," Anna nodded. "What can you tell me?"

"Not much more as yet," Stiles said. "Sorry. Again, we don't know you and you don't know us. Until we get back to Beacon Hills, I'd like to hold off on that."

Anna nodded. "I understand."

"Hey! We're working on it," Stiles assured her. "But I need to focus for a bit." He nodded at the radio. "You can find something to listen to, if you want."

Accepting the distraction, Anna played with the radio and found a Sirius pop-culture station. Interestingly enough, it was one Stiles often listened to since getting lost in music wasn't good for his focus.

Julie reminded Stiles to call in at the one hour mark. They also took the risk to take a quick break at a gas station at the edge of a small town about three-quarters of the way back. Stiles needed to stretch and both Julie and Anna used the rest room. It took just under two-and-a-half hours to get to the Stilinski residence.

"Okay, this is my dad's place," Stiles explained as he pulled into the driveway. "He's the local sheriff and it's warded from, well, just about everything. Next to the Den, it's the safest place in town. Julie's going to spend the night here tonight, so ask her if you need anything."

"I will, thank you so much!" Anna said.

Stiles figured Peter would be inside, so he followed the two women into the house. Peter and John were watching a baseball game on the television. He could see the relief on both men's faces as they walked into the house.

"Anna Cooper, my husband, Peter Hale," Stiles introduced them.

"Alpha Hale," Anna stood straighter. "My name is Anna Cooper, of the Marley Pack. I am seeking refuge with the Hale Pack and request your permission to enter your territory."

Peter stood and nodded. "Miss Cooper. You are granted permission to stay with us and your request for refuge will be considered."

Anna gave a sigh of relief and relaxed. "Thank you, so much!"

John stood and looked at Anna. "I know it's a common name, but do you know a Stephen Cooper? He'd be about my age, we were in the Army together."

"I have..." she took a breath. "I had an Uncle Stephan and I think he was in the Army, but that was before I was born. It might be the same person."

Peter and Stiles looked at each other. That might be the connection to the Hale Pack, one they never could have anticipated.

"Not important tonight," John assured her. "Come on, we have a room for you upstairs and I'll bet you can use a shower and some food."

"Yes, sir," she nodded. 

"John is fine," he said. He looked between Stiles and Julie. "Someone want to manage some food?"

"I can make sandwiches," Julie offered. "It's been a long day and that will be simplest."

"If you have this all under control," Peter said. "We'll be going home."

"We'll be fine," John assured them. 

"We'll be back in the morning!" Stiles promised. 

"Bring pastries!" John said. "The good stuff from Marconi's!"

Stiles rolled his eyes. "Only because you have company," he grinned.

Peter followed Stiles out to the car. "Did you run here?" Stiles asked, seeing none of the pack cars.

"It was easier," Peter admitted. "Didn't want to have to manage two cars after you got here."

"Good, you can drive then," Stiles said with a yawn. "I'm exhausted. Anything we need to do tonight?"

Peter leaned in for a kiss. "Everything can wait," he replied.

**Author's Note:**

> Of course there will be more... let's see what the next Full Moon Ficlet prompt is! ::grin::


End file.
